Bindery Books launches a new fiction imprint
Bindery’s new imprint will be run by the people at the true crime and horror podcast Last Podcast on the Left.
Premium Content
Links of Interest: August 26, 2026
Random House suspends sales for forthcoming book by Ross Barkan, a gender-driven look at who’s getting published, and other recent news.
Harper Collins launches manga imprint
KAZÉ from Harper Collins will be a collaborative, creator-focused imprint publishing manga, manhwa, and manhua for English-language readers.
Insight Editions launches Naga Archives
The new imprint will focus on “supernatural technologies, mythical creatures, occult iconography, and forgotten belief systems.”
On the List: Picking Daisies on Sundays by Liana Cincotti
Cincotti strives to bring back the magic found in iconic early 2000s romantic comedies: a whimsical feel paired with wholesome, relatable characters.
Ingram officially launches competitor to Edelweiss and NetGalley
Since Edelweiss changed hands recently and increased prices on publishers, there’s been an opening for a competitor to step into the space.
Links of Interest: August 19, 2026
Activity books are booming as screen-free entertainment, panic over Gen Z’s reading habits is overblown, and more recent news.
New agency: July First Literary
Agent Brent Taylor has launched July First Literary, specializing in commercial fiction. They are not yet open to submissions.
Lit Circle: connecting readers with local author events
A former bookstore owner in Chicago has launched an online platform that connects readers with local author events and literary programming.
Amazon is buying and scanning books to train AI
But breathless coverage misses the fact that most of these books may be out of date, undesirable to readers, and not valuable per se.
How Claude watermarking works: Some accuse Anthropic of compliance theatre
Commentators find it problematic that the watermark gets applied when Claude is used for assistive tasks rather than generative tasks.
Romance’s Grip on Kindle Bestseller Lists Is Loosening
While romance remains the top-selling genre for Kindle, its share of the market dropped in the US, with mystery/thriller/suspense gaining.
Five Pulitzer winners disclosed AI use this year
Across 15 journalism categories, five award winners disclosed AI use in their submissions, the most since the disclosure was added in 2024.
Claude is adding watermarks to generated content
Due to EU transparency laws around AI-generated content, future models will add embedded watermarks and digitally signed provenance metadata.
AAP’s final book sales figures for 2025
Overall sales were up versus 2024, trade sales were flat, and audiobook sales exceeded ebook sales for the second year in a row.
Influencer Marketing Works. Can Authors Buy Their Way In?
For authors, the question is whether personally pursuing it works—and if it’s possible to pay for it in a way that leads to meaningful sales.
New imprint: Harper Catholic
Building on Catholic Bible Press, the effort will expand into spiritual classics, theology, devotional works, and memoir.
Spotify introduces new label for AI-generated artist identities
Spotify will roll out an AI Persona badge that signals an artist’s identity may be AI generated and does not represent a real person.
Obama hosting a books podcast
Former president Barack Obama will discuss six books that shaped his life as part of a limited-series Audible podcast launching on Sept. 24.
Links of Interest: August 12, 2026
Publishers don’t fact-check memoir, HarperCollins CEO calls for industry-wide solutions on AI, and more industry news.
New publisher: Enigma Editions
Enigma is composed of the former staff of Archway Editions, and will publish a “genre-blind list.”
Wicked Son Press (a division of Post Hill) launches a fiction imprint
Meg Keene Books will release four to six novels per year to elevate Jewish voices and contribute to Jewish literary conversation.
Audible launches Audible for Business
The service allows audiobooks to be sold and distributed in bulk for events and conferences, large groups of employees, or marketing campaigns.
Zenòdot update: find works in translation
The database that helps readers find book translations now taps into 50 sources and covers national libraries from every continent.
Links of Interest: August 5, 2026
Poets find copyrighted work on Giggle Academy, and Princeton University Press partners with AI licensing firm.
Author not only loses copyright lawsuit but has to pay defendants’ legal fees
The judge says Freeman’s case was brought in bad faith and awarding attorney fees might help deter other suits with “unreasonable claims.”
Barnes & Noble tightens guidelines for local author events
Barnes & Noble stores nationwide received a corporate how-to-handle-local-author-events memo that will restrict which authors are accepted.
ChatGPT blocks requests to imitate specific writers’ styles
Style isn’t explicitly protected under copyright law, but blocking such requests may be wise to avoid adding fuel to the litigation fire.
European Union’s AI Act requires transparency around specific types of AI-generated content
It covers AI-generated or AI-manipulated content that could be mistaken as real and is meant to offer transparency around deep fakes.
Seven-figure book deal canceled; Hugh Howey says it’s the “end of an era”
A debut author had his $2+ million book deal canceled because his agents came to believe his manuscript was substantially AI assisted.
On the List: Witch Season by Julia Bianco
The publisher prioritized social media over legacy media, and advance review copy readers talked the book up on Instagram and TikTok.
Nonfiction publisher Beacon Press launches fiction imprint
Beacon Press—one of the most well-known brands in serious nonfiction—has decided to launch a fiction imprint called Fort Point.
New agency: Backlist Literary Rights & Management
Founder Mark Ryan is focusing his agency on selling subsidiary rights for self-published authors.
Update on Substack’s AI detection using Pangram
Last week, Substack rolled out AI detection site-wide for content, which has sparked considerable discussion, controversy, speculation, and confusion.
What Does an Ethical Business Look Like When Agents Charge?
I spoke with Jaclyn Gilbert at Driftless Literary, where clients pay a flat consulting fee for her to help place their work at a publisher.
Agents Are Editing More Than Ever. Is It Sustainable?
I interviewed professor Laura B. McGrath, a literary scholar who spent years interviewing agents to understand their role in the marketplace.
New fiction imprint from Simon & Schuster UK: Simon Stream
This is yet another Big Five initiative to pick up successful self-published authors from around the globe.
Harlequin launches a new romantasy imprint: MoonFire
According to the publisher, “MoonFire will publish…paranormal, cosy, and dark fantasy romance, both accessible and commercially appealing.”
Gay adult entertainment company launches publishing arm
San Francisco–based Falcon | Naked Sword is launching FalconInk, a publishing house focused on erotic fiction and targeting women readers.
Oslo-based bookstore launches publishing imprint
Oslo’s sole English-language bookstore has launched an imprint, Prismatic Press, to serve Norway-based authors who write in English.
Links of Interest: July 29, 2026
A former Congresswoman is pivoting to book influencing, the rise of romance bookstores in rural areas, and more.
Researchers attempt to prove that generative AI dilutes the market for books
Authors who are angry about AI training should be glad that researchers are trying to demonstrate, with evidence, how market harm is occurring.
Anthropic settlement approved by judge, who reduces attorney fees by nearly half
Service awards paid to class representatives (e.g., Andi Bartz) were also reduced from $50,000 to $15,000, for being “unreasonable”.
US Copyright Office proposes fee increase
The new fee, $55 for a single work by a single author, will be implemented this fall unless Congress blocks approval of the increases.
New York Times journalist investigates origins of AI-generated nonfiction
The subject is a retiree who has published more than 450 AI-generated books and sells a few hundred books—mostly print—per month.
New agency: Blueprint Literary
The agency will represent Jewish, Israeli, Arab-Israeli, and Palestinian authors, with a focus on international and media rights sales.
New imprint at Penguin Random House UK: Enlighten
Enlighten will be a new imprint under Cornerstone at PRH UK, focusing on big questions about spirituality, religion, and philosophy.
New academic imprint from Springer Nature
Nature Books from Springer Nature will publish long-form work under the trusted and recognized scientific brand of Nature.
Links of Interest: July 22, 2026
A debut YA novelist offers a long and nuanced explication of her experience at a Big Five publisher, plus much more.
Substack adds AI detection tools, but creators can disable them
Substack announced that readers can now use Pangram to scan text on Substack to see how much of it was likely written with AI assistance.